Suitcase of Memories
Hollanders Create Butler Township Legacy
By Carmen McCullough & Francine Guck
Suitcase of Memories
Hollanders Create Butler Township Legacy
By Carmen McCullough & Francine Guck
“George and Johanna (Ruys) Boogaard with Grandchildren,” mixed media collage.
Acknowledgements
Many thanks to those who helped make this book possible:
Rethos: Places Reimagined
History Museum of East Otter Tail County
Holy Cross Catholic Church
Minnesota Historical Society
New York Mills Regional Cultural Center
Otter Tail County Historical Society
Springboard for the Arts
“Marie and Ted Van Erp Wedding,” mixed media collage.
Introduction
“Suitcase of Memories” was created by Francine Guck and Carmen McCullough, sisters and descendants of the early Dutch settlers in Otter Tail County. The inspiration to create this book came from an assortment of vintage family photographs and newspaper clippings discovered in a worn, blue suitcase from their Grandmother’s past. The contents of the suitcase told the story of a group of Hollanders who came to the United States to settle in what is now known as Butler Township in Minnesota.
Carmen McCullough and Francine Guck
worn, blue suitcase.
“Suitcase of Memories” was made possible through the Rethos: Places Reimagined - Otter Tail County Story Mapping Project. Much has been lost to time. However, as local Story Mappers, the sisters were able to share their account of the Hollanders’ settlement in Butler Township.
While the topic is historical in nature, it is also quite personal. The mixed media collage artwork throughout the book favors their ancestors specifically (Boogaards and Van Erps), and the Memory Lane section documents the sisters’ memories of this Dutch legacy, generations later.
The
“Marie (Boogaard) Van Erp and Barn,” mixed media collage.
This book is dedicated to our Grandmother,
Marie (Boogaard) Van Erp
Without her adventurous spirit and determination, we would not be here today!
Overview
Unrest due to the looming World War was a major factor that led the Dutch to consider moving to America. Others hoped to improve their condition by owning their own land or by participating in the fur trade.
These early settlers came to Minnesota with great courage and little knowledge of the potentially harsh climate. It was the promise of rich farmland that enticed them to travel to the Butler area.
Upon arrival, they were not impressed with their dismal surroundings. The living quarters consisted of tar shacks and only two or three farmhouses existed at the time. Their first tobacco crop was destroyed by hail, and insects ruined their potato plants. Some of the settlers returned to Holland, and some left to find work elsewhere.
Despite impassable roads, mosquitos, potato bugs, snakes, and strange languages and customs, many stayed to make a life in Butler Township. Those resilient individuals then convinced their friends and relatives to also make the trip to Butler. Eventually the community began to thrive.
A church was built, the land was farmed, and through the many hardships, they survived. They became a close-knit community who encouraged each other through difficulty and celebrated each other during the good times. Their heritage of faith, perseverance, and stability was important to Butler Township, Otter Tail County, and to Minnesota.
Letter from Francis Murray, 1910.
Dutch settlers arriving in New York City in 1910. The photo was taken in Chicago, as they transferred trains on their way to Butler, Minnesota.
“Across the Ocean,” mixed media collage detail.
“Hollanders Arrive in Butler,” mixed media collage.
History of Butler
Otter Tail County plat book map of Butler Township, 1912.
Butler Township
Butler Township was officially organized in July 1883. It is located about 15 miles north of New York Mills, Minnesota, on Otter Tail County Road Hwy 67. The Township is named after Stephen Butler, an Otter Tail County deputy sheriff, who also served as the county treasurer for 16 years. Petitioners wanted to name the township Red Eye, for the river that runs through the area, but Wadena County had already claimed the name.
In 1890, Butler township’s population numbered 179. The first settlers included immigrants from Holland, Belgium, and Germany, as well as those of American birth. The township became known as a settling ground for a Dutch Colony in 1910. At the 2010 census, the population was 283, and several descendants of the first settlers still lived in the township.
Johnston Stock & Farming Co. employment report, 1910.
Johnston Stock & Farming Co.
The Johnston Land Company was instrumental in bringing the Hollanders to Butler Township. After having taken the good trees in the Butler area for lumber, the company wanted to sell the land.
The company promised cheap land that, when cleared, would be ideal for raising tobacco. To promote farming in the area, they built a modern dairy farm with a large stock barn, a general store, and creamery.
The Dutch settlers helped make Otter Tail County one of the largest dairyproducing areas at that time.
What remains of the Johnston Stock & Farming Co. stock barn in 2021.
“Johanna Van Erp and Catherine (Van Erp) Lachowitzer,” mixed media collage.
Post Office & Store
The Butler post office was established in the fall of 1897. Butler had no rural delivery service, so people went there to pick up the mail, shop, and visit. It was located inside the Butler store until about 1953 when the mail was then handled directly from New York Mills.
Sunday at the Butler store was a community tradition. The store, built in 1898, served as a gathering place for people throughout the years. Some came to buy, and some came just to talk. Eventually, better roads and the automobile made it easier for people to go to New York Mills or Perham for their purchases.
The Butler store on a Sunday afternoon, 1913.
“Johanna Van Erp and Boyd School in Sisseton, South Dakota,” mixed media collage.
School Districts
None of the Hollanders arriving in 1910 could speak English. However, they eventually learned the language and sent their children to one of three one-room schoolhouses; Bear Creek School District #165, or School District #228 or #263.
Because there were no school buses, some students had to walk up to four miles to school. The teachers boarded in the student’s homes. It is said that school children would bring raw potatos from home and put them in the ashbox. The potatos would be cooked and ready to eat at lunch time.
Around 1953, the one-room schools were consolidated and Butler students were bused into New York Mills.
School District #263, Class of 1912.
